The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1887-11-10
THE NAVY DEPARTMENT.
What Has Been Accomplished Unde
Last Years Administration.

Last Years Administration.
The year of naval administration, to
the review of which large part of
Secretary Whitney's report will be de-
voted, is in every way one of the most
important known to the Navy Depart
ment since the close of the civil war.
1t has witnessed the completion of the
new steel cruisers Atlanta and Boston,
the fastest and most efficient vessels
now in commission. 1t includes the
practical completion of the Chicago,
whose trial trip will be made very
soon, and which Will doubtless be reg
ularly in commission before the meet
ing of Congress.
The year has also witnessed the be-
ginning of the construction of two
much faster cruisers, the Charleston
and Baltimore, and two gun-boats, al
of which are now well advanced. 1t
has seen the award of contracts for
three additional unarmored cruisers,
two of which are TO 90 nineteen knots
an hour. and the third, the Newark,
eighteen knots, while all are to be
powerfully armed; and simultaneously
with these contracts others were
awarded for two more gun-boats.
Still another form of construction be-
longing to this year is the dynamite
gun cruiser. This vessel well adj
vanced at Philadelphia, is to reach the
high speed of twenty knots, and to
carry three guns, each capable of
throwing projectiles loaded with two
hundred pounds of dynamite to the
distance of at least a mile. The Secre-
tary has also invited proposals for
torpedo boat which is to have a speed
of twenty-five knots, premiums beng
given for exceeding this speed and
penalties exacted for falling short of it.
The revi ew of the twelvemonth must
also take in the planning of the six
thousand-ton armored cruiser and the
armored battleship, which, in their de-
gree of impregnability combined
with battery power, will far exceed
any other vessel thus far projected for
the navy. One of them will be built at
Brooklyn and the other at Norfolk,
thus greatly increasing the activity of
the yards at those two points. Besides
these new constructions, work has been
resumed on the five iron doub!e-turret
monitors, one of which has 5000 tons
displacement, and the other four 1887
each. Finally board has been devils
ing plans for floating batteries for
which the last Congress made an APP
preparation. and will probably be able
20 report its conclusions within few
weeks.
OF vessels thus added or to be added
to the navy, we find twenty-fOur or
twenty-five, including the Dolphin and
the Stilletto, should the latter be pur-
chased. In addition, the department
has been very busy during the last
year in making contracts for steel,
both for armor and for guns. the guam
tity of this material ordered from
American manufacturers being UMPIRE
cedented. Gun-making has also gone
on apace, and the Washington navy
factory. Proposals have been also in
vited and received for making steel
cast guns, in accordance with the act
of Congress. Still another important
work has been the assignment of con-
tracts for building two timber dry
docks, one to be placed at Norfolk and
the other at Brooklyn.
Apart from these very large under
takings in the building of vessels and
guns and docks, Secretary Whitney
has put in operation during the year
plans of recognizing his department
on business principles, the chief of
which is the new system of purchasing
and distributing supplies and keeping
accounts, which went into effect July
l. Altogether. the year which the
Secretary will review has been busy
and fruitful one for the department of
which he has charge. - Washington
Letter.